Saturday, January 22, 2011

Chocolate Chip Cream Scones

Morning.
Tired.
Hungry.
Carb needed.
Butter needed.
Chocolate needed.

Scones.

Scones are the best because you can make it all in one bowl, be half asleep listening to NPR Morning Edition or watching the morning news, pop them into the oven, and take a shower. When I headed out the door to work, I threw them into a cardboard bakery box and walked out the door with some lovely scones (my baking instructor drilled into me not to put hot items into any plastic container...they need to breathe in a cardboard container!)

1. Preheat over to 425 degrees
2. Mix together dry ingredients.
3. Using a pastry cutter, two knives or your fingers (I use my fingers), cut in the butter. (The book uses a food processor, but I like to make scones by hand...less to clean up!)
4. Add whipping cream and chocolate chips. Blend together quickly (I use my hands and/or a spatula). Do not overmix.
5. Shape into a round or square.
6. Brush with egg wash. Sprinkle with sugar.
7. Cut into shapes. Place on parchment or Silpat covered baking sheet.
8. Bake for 14-16 minutes until golden brown and delicious. I cut my smaller and got 16 scones.

I'm new to the whole baking thing, but I decided to give these a shot last night as the recipe seemed simple enough to follow. They turned out quite well! The only problem I had was that the dough didn't quite come together with the 1 cup of cream, so I ended up having to use a little extra milk (at which point I put too much in - making the dough a bit sticky). I thought I had definitely ruined the scones, but they still came out looking great and tasting pretty darn good!

I normally don't care for scones because all of the ones I've had in the past have been very dry. I came across this post and thought I'd give it a shot since there was cream involved, they had to be more moist than what I had experienced in the past. I made these today with regular sized choc. chips (didn't have the minis).... YUM!!!! Big mistake keeping these here over the weekend, I am going to have to send some with my husband to his work to share with his coworkers!

@Monika #32 - Monika, I've never refrigerated the dough. However, I have frozen scone dough in the past and that works great (just add a few minutes to the baking time - do not thaw before baking). If I'm going to bake something in the morning, I freeze the cut dough, I don't refrigerate it. - mary